by Sara Orwig
When the number ended, she looked up and saw the need mirrored in the depths of his eyes. “I want you, Lila,” he whispered. “I want to make love again.”
“Sam,” she cautioned, shaking her head. “Let’s get off the dance floor,” she whispered. She felt as if all her resolve was melting away. “Now I’m ready for dinner,” she said, struggling to change the subject.
She wasn’t one degree more hungry than she had been before, but the dancing was too close, too personal. They were touching, hugging, making sexy moves in the fast dances. She wanted to get back to the booth with a table between them, have dinner and then drive herself home. The evening had been fun, but she needed to keep him at arm’s length and end it early.
Their waiter appeared, refilling their glasses before asking what she wanted.
“The spinach salad,” she said.
“Is that all? You’ll be hungry before you get home,” Sam said.
She shook her head. “That’s all.”
“I’ll have the New York strip, cooked medium,” Sam said.
She slid out of the booth. “Need to freshen up,” she said. As she walked away, her back tingled and she felt Sam’s gaze on her.
In the lobby she stopped to call home because her mother worried if she didn’t know where her children were.
As wild as her brother was, he kept his mother fairly well informed about where he would be. That was one of the few considerations Hack gave anyone.
No one answered at the Double H. Lila left a message because her mother checked when she returned home.
* * *
Sam watched Lila as she crossed the room. When he’d held her close, she had felt different than last time. Her waist wasn’t as tiny as he had remembered. She was still soft curves, warm, enticing. He wanted her and he wanted to talk her into staying in Pine Valley at his house tonight.
When she returned, he watched her approach the table. He stood, waiting until she was seated before he sat again. He wondered whether she really disliked all the old-time courtesies or just certain ones, like ordering for her.
She was too damned independent, yet he just couldn’t get her out of his system. He thought there was only one way to do so—make love until he was totally satisfied and could walk away without looking back.
Trouble was, the lady wasn’t cooperating. He wasn’t getting any chances for lovemaking, but tonight he was making inroads on her resistance.
As they ate, they talked about various topics. She took dainty bites, dawdling over her salad as if she didn’t really want it.
Finally they finished, and when they returned to the dance floor for a fast, pounding song, he watched her with growing desire. She had pulled off the cardigan she wore over her short-sleeved scarlet sweater. Lights had dimmed and it was darker than it had been earlier.
She danced around him, hips moving. Strobe lights flashed and the dance floor filled with other dancers, everyone gyrating to the loud music.
Lights slashed across them, flashing on her face and then plunging her into darkness. Lights showed her green eyes, her flushed cheeks, the dark auburn hair swirling out behind her when she spun around. More streaks of light cut across the V of her sweater, revealing her lush curves and creamy skin. The next flash and his gaze was on her waist and stomach. He was startled to see her tummy looked slightly rounded, not flat below her tiny waist as before. The light was gone instantly. The next flash she had turned away.
He broke into a sweat as he danced, while she looked cool, composed. He wanted her more than ever.
The dance ended with a crash of drums and then a ballad started and he pulled her into his arms to hold her close and barely move in time to the music.
They danced in silence, but this time he thought about her and felt her soft body pressed against him. He ran his hand down over her hip, back up until he reached her ribs and she caught his wrist and moved his hand to her back.
She was thicker through the middle, her stomach a bit fuller, not the flat stomach she’d had before. He thought about the cardigan she had worn throughout the hot day, yet in the air-conditioned club, it would not be unpleasant to wear.
He pictured her as she had looked at the barbecue, remembering her dress and how it had hidden her waist. So had the dresses he had seen her wear at the club. Everything until today, and even then, the cardigan hid her waist fairly well.
Sam tightened his arm to pull her closer, wondering if she felt so different or if his memory wasn’t good. A weight gain? He thought of how she avoided him, usually wouldn’t go out with him, turning him down. Yet at the same time, she had a response every time he was around, as if she wanted him but shouldn’t.
One possibility occurred to him, sending such a shock through his body that he stopped dancing.
Five
Sam quickly regained his composure. He counted back and realized it was a full three months since their night together.
He felt as if all the breath had been knocked out of him. Lila was going to have a baby—his baby. He was as sure of it as he was that flowers would grow in the spring. That would explain her contradictory actions, one minute flirting and the next throwing an invisible wall between them and refusing to go out with him.
He would be a dad. Lila was going to have his baby. He felt weak in the knees, as if he’d had a major blow to his middle.
Had she come to Texas and expected to avoid telling him? Anger stirred that she would hide from him the truth about his baby. Maybe she was going to wait until she was back in California to let him know. She had to know she couldn’t hide it forever. She obviously intended to keep the baby or she would have already done something. That thought gave him chills.
A baby. Their baby. Stunned, he danced automatically, forgetting everyone around him. He would have to marry her.
The moment that occurred to him, he felt another blow to his insides that took his breath. Get married. His first reaction was a panicky feeling of being trapped.
As quickly as he’d thought of marriage, he focused on Lila. His panicky feelings evaporated. Lila was beautiful, intelligent, sexy. Marriage to Lila, a family of his own, life couldn’t get any better. She was also totally independent, the epitome of the independent woman. Lila would not want to marry—if she did, she would not have been trying to avoid him.
The dance ended and another started. Without a word, he began to dance and she followed his lead, another fast piece where they danced with space between them and he could watch her and think and adjust to his discovery.
His baby. That was a miracle. His own family—if he could ever convince her to marry him.
It astounded him and annoyed him that she wouldn’t share the news with him. He wanted to sweep her up and lift her high, showering kisses on her. He was going to marry Lila. He was going to be a dad.
An old favorite started playing and he drew her into his arms for some close dancing. “This is good, Lila,” he said in a husky voice, his mind wrapped up in his new discovery. “Let me take you to dinner tomorrow night.”
He whirled her around and dipped, pausing. As she gazed up into his eyes, her arm tightened around his neck, making his heart pound. He wanted to kiss her full, rosy lips. He tightened his arms as she wound her fingers in the hair at the back of his head.
“Sam,” she whispered.
Their gazes locked and he forgot the other dancers. He wanted her more than he ever had before. This would be good, he decided. Good, when—and if—he could talk her into marriage.
“We’ll go to dinner and celebrate the new movie and talk. I’ll pick you up at six,” he said, slowly straightening and taking her up with him while their gazes still held.
When he looked at her mouth, she licked her lower lip. His body tensed, heated with desire. He pulled her closer to continue dancing while he
looked into her green eyes. “We’ll go to my place and I’ll cook my special steaks. How’s that?”
“Sam—”
“It’s Friday night. You want to stay out at the ranch with Hack?”
She smiled. “I think on Friday night the last place Hack will be is at the Double H.”
“I’ll pick you up at six, darlin’. You’ll have a fun evening and I can show you my new outdoor kitchen and cook you the best steak west of the Mississippi. How’s that for an offer you can’t refuse? I might even throw in taking you dancing later.”
“You’re impossible,” she said, smiling.
“But oh so interested in the beautiful lady and wanting to spend an evening together. We might even shoot another game of pool with another wager. I’ll give you a chance to win that donation to the child center yet.”
“Even if I won, I don’t think you’d keep your promise on a donation to the child-care center.”
“I’m not that opposed to the little tykes. You misjudge me. You doubt my word?”
“Please, Sam, I’ve heard you talk and I know exactly how you feel about them. I’ve heard how you and your brother really campaigned against the center. An evening together—all we’ll do is fuss and fight.”
“Absolutely not! There will be nothing but harmony—well, maybe a challenge or two—tomorrow night.”
“Why do I think that’s the understatement of this century?” she asked, laughing.
“There, I made you laugh. That’s the best, Lila. When you laugh, you light up and I love it. I’ll have to try harder.”
He fought the urge to let his eyes roam over her waist. Instead, he walked beside her, asking her if she wanted anything to drink. When she chose a glass of lemonade, he summoned a waiter and placed an order for lemonade and for another cold bottle of beer.
As she stood beside her chair, his gaze slipped over her. There was the slightest bulge to her tummy. A bulge she definitely had not had three months earlier.
While he held her chair, his fingers played across her nape. He wanted to pull her to her feet and ask her about the pregnancy, but this wasn’t the time or place.
As soon as their drinks arrived, she excused herself, picked up her purse and headed for the ladies’ room.
Still in shock, he watched her walk away. He would have to talk her into marriage. He was certain she had already made up her mind to be a single mom. Not with his baby, would she be. He could be determined, too, and he wasn’t going to let her independence mess up their child’s life.
* * *
Lila went to the ladies’ room and studied her image. Thank goodness the club had the lights dimmed in the dining room, although she thought her slacks and sweater hid her figure well enough. Most men she had known were not keenly observant. Heaven knows, the men in her family weren’t.
She returned to the table to face Sam, who sat across from her. He looked relaxed, yet she had the feeling he was studying her intently all through their light conversation.
“When they start shooting a movie here, it’ll turn this town upside down.”
“Like I said, so far there’s no indication it will be in Royal. Or even in Maverick County. And if something changes and a scene is shot here, I think most people are level-headed. Sam, it’s time for me to start home.”
He motioned for the tab and then she picked up her purse. In the foyer, he collected her things.
“We could go out to my house,” he suggested. “You can stay there and it’ll save you a drive this late. Or leave your car here at the club. I’ll take you home.”
“It’s not that late.”
“If you’re going to go, I insist on driving.”
“Just how helpless do you think I am?” she asked, annoyed and amused at the same time.
“Not helpless at all. That’s not the point. Maybe I want to be with you a little longer—ever think of that?”
“All right,” she said, suspecting she would lose the argument no matter how long they debated. Sam had a stubborn lift to his chin. “I’ll leave my car here and you can drive me home.”
“Great.” He took her arm and they walked out to his sleek black sports car. Sam held the door and she slid onto the soft leather seat.
As he walked around the car, her gaze ran over him and she thought about dancing with him when he held her close. Now she was going to dinner with him tomorrow night. Would she ever be able to stop letting him talk her into things?
He slid behind the wheel, glancing at her when he drove away from the club. “What do you do for entertainment in California?”
“That’s easy. Go to the beach. I love the ocean. It’s exciting, awesome, wonderful. I walk on the beach every day. I swim a lot of the time.” She turned in the seat to face him. The lights from the dash highlighted his prominent cheekbones, the bulge of his biceps.
Would he kiss her good-night? Her anticipation blossomed, spreading heat low within her.
During the drive he kept her entertained with conversation and when he circled in front of the Double H, he parked at the foot of the front steps.
He came around to walk her to the door. “It was a fun evening, Sam,” she said as she crossed the porch and stopped in front of the entranceway.
“I hope so, because it was for me,” he said, brushing his hand lightly on her cheek. “Do you think your family is home?”
“I’m sure my parents are and have gone to bed. It doesn’t matter. I have a key so I can get in.”
He smiled. “I’ll see you tomorrow night at six.” He walked away and she turned to go inside. For an instant, even though she knew she shouldn’t, she felt a flash of disappointment that he hadn’t kissed her. She could still feel the brush of his hand on her cheek, a touching caress that seemed uncharacteristic of the Sam she knew.
She had to tell him the truth about the baby, but it was important to wait until the perfect moment.
* * *
Friday evening Lila was more nervous than ever. She had changed clothes three times, finally deciding on a sleeveless blue dress. It had a straight skirt that ended above her knees. She hoped her legs would take his attention. The dress had a matching short-sleeved cardigan sweater.
She left her hair loose. She wanted him looking at her hair, her face, her legs, anywhere except her expanding middle. There was a light rap on the door and her mother entered. Dressed in casual pink slacks and a pink shirt, she reminded Lila of the mothers on sitcoms when she was a little girl. The ideal wife—in another time and another era.
“You look beautiful, Lila. Just radiant.”
“I don’t feel so radiant, but thank you, Mom.”
“Think about it. Tonight might be a good time to tell the news to Sam,” Barbara said, sitting on an upholstered blue-and-white-striped chair while she watched Lila brush her hair.
“No. I just can’t do it this early in my stay. He’ll hound me to pieces. I’ll tell him, but in time.”
“Lila, Sam’s the father of your baby. I think you’re too harsh on him.”
Lila smiled as chimes sounded. “Here he is, and I’ll be nice to him,” she said, amused by her mother. “You let him in and you can talk to him a few minutes since you think he’s so great.”
“I’ll be glad to,” Barbara said, leaving the room. Lila took another long, critical look at her image in the full-length mirror and decided the dress looked fine and hid everything it needed to.
She picked up her purse and went to find Sam.
* * *
Sam stood as she entered the room.
“Come join us, Lila,” her dad said. “Sam and I are talking about a golf game this weekend.”
Sam barely heard Beau as his gaze swept over Lila. His heart missed a beat. She wore another sleeveless cotton dress with plain lines, yet on her the d
ress looked great, showing off her fabulous legs. The neckline gave a tantalizing glimpse of lush curves and her green eyes were wide, thickly lashed, holding a sexy look of approval as her gaze swept over him.
There was a current of excitement that had his nerves on edge. Tonight he wanted to know the truth and he intended to confront Lila about it.
For the next half hour they sat with her parents until Lila turned down her father’s offer of drinks. Sam declined, too, rising to his feet to cross the room.
“I promised Lila dinner, so it’s time we leave for Royal, but I’ve enjoyed seeing you both. Everyone is still talking about what a fabulous barbecue you had this year. You outdid yourselves, and the Hacket barbecue became an even bigger legend.”
“It’s fun to do,” Barbara said, walking with them to the door.
“It was a damn fine barbecue, if I do say so myself,” Beau said, smiling broadly. “Bring my baby home at a decent hour, Sam.”
“Yes, sir. It’s also nice to have Lila back in Texas.”
“Night, Mom, Dad,” she said as Sam took her arm to walk to the car. “My parents really like you, Sam.”
“You have nice parents. It’s another member of the family that I really want to like me,” he said, flirting with her.
“He does,” she said.
“I’m definitely not referring to your kid brother and you know it,” he said.
“Of course I like you or I wouldn’t be going out with you tonight. I consider you a very good friend of the family. The whole family.”
“Well, then, I’m going to change that,” he drawled in a deeper tone of voice.
“Don’t make me a project.”
“It might be fun, darlin’. Watch what you ask.”
“You control yourself, Sam,” she cautioned.
“Something that’s impossible to do if I have a chance to kiss you. There’s no way I can resist taking the opportunity. Maybe if we just start now, I’ll get all this kissing out of my system and we can enjoy an ordinary evening.”
“Nice try, but no, we’re not starting with kisses. Absolutely not.”